Guardian Angels dub North Michigan Avenue 'Muggers Mile'

Despite claims, many Michigan Avenue shoppers said they still feel safe

July 24, 2013|By Michelle Manchir, Chicago Tribune reporter

Miguel Fuentes, leader of Chicago’s chapter of the anticrime group Guardian Angels, distributes fliers to pedestrians with safety tips such as how to locate stolen cellphones. (José M. Osorio, Chicago Tribune)

Is Chicago's Magnificent Mile becoming better known as a hub of violent crime than a shopping destination?

That's what the volunteer anti-crime group Guardian Angels claimed Tuesday as it handed out fliers referring to the elegant stretch of North Michigan Avenue as "Muggers Mile."

But Chicago police quickly panned the Guardian Angels' concerns as overblown. The department's crime data suggest strong-arm robberies, like the most recent high-profile one last weekend, have dropped sharply over the past couple of years, according to a Tribune analysis.

The move by the Guardian Angels came after a group of teens on Michigan Avenue mugged a woman from Michigan, stealing her iPhone, and punched a 15-year-old girl from Florida who tried to intervene Friday night.

The fliers handed out by six members of the Guardian Angels to pedestrians near Water Tower Place offered safety tips such as downloading software onto their cellphones that would help locate them if stolen. The nonprofit group has operated in Chicago since 1981, patrolling streets to deter crime.

Miguel Fuentes, leader of the Chicago chapter, said criminals are sometimes drawn to the Magnificent Mile because of the large number of tourists, a group less likely to attend court hearings if arrests are made because they're from out of town.

"Michigan Avenue and the general downtown area are enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people every day," the statement said. "Chicago's downtown area continues to be safe, and while there have been a few isolated incidents, police have responded quickly, making arrests before they become a larger problem."

According to the department's statistics, strong-arm robberies have decreased since 2011 near Michigan Avenue's major hot spots. In the police beat that includes Water Tower Place and the John Hancock Center, six robberies took place through mid-July this year, down sharply from 25 in the same period in 2011. In the area around Navy Pier and Streeterville, 11 strong-arm robberies have been recorded this year, down from 22 in the same time period in 2011, the records show.

Many of the shoppers handed fliers by the Guardian Angels on Tuesday said they feel safe on Michigan Avenue.

"There seem to be plenty of cops," said John House, 41, of Minnesota, who was visiting the John Hancock Observatory and Disney Store on Tuesday with his wife and two young daughters.

Laura Miller, 59, who said she frequently walks her dog around the River North neighborhood, appreciated the safety message though.

"I feel very safe, but it's true. It can happen anywhere," Miller said of muggings. "People are attracted to the iPhone, and they might hurt you to get it."